Class

The discussions about class warfare center around income disparities and that can be misleading. In order to simplify things and remove any hint of prejudice, just consider white middle income and upper middle income groups. While the divide in income is important there is another aspect that is even more important and that has to do with the slowly developing difference in what in Europe is a class system. The one group consist of high school graduates who perform jobs that pay a get by salary and offer very little chance of promotion. After a period of training they do not feel challenged by their work and think of their jobs as just a way to make the money they need for other activities. The feeling of accomplishment for this group comes from activities away from the job such as family and hobbies. While there are always exceptions, the children of this group see a different kind of home life, in that the parents are not oriented toward arts and science and formal education. In a world where technology is playing a more important role than ever before, this kind of social group will lag further behind. The second group are those who have finished college and higher and work at jobs they where they are challenged and where their work adds to their self-worth. They have ample opportunities for promotion and often times are seen as having a prestigious position by the community. They look forward to going to work and they get a lot of satisfaction from their work. They live in areas away from the other class and their children are exposed early in life to arts and science and education is a high priority. Their children see work as a way to gain acceptance and grow and development additional skills. As these differences are passed from one generation to another the class distinctions will continue to widen and this is a concern.

CNG

Compressed natural gas (CNG) is methane in the gaseous state and liquid natural gas (LNG) is methane in the liquid state. CNG would be used for cars and LNG for trucks. The gas would be stored in high pressure safe tanks, perhaps produced by 3M but the liquid must be kept cold using a small onboard compressor. With LNG a semi could go about 450 miles before a refill which is about half the distance it can go with diesel, however drivers are not allowed to drive more than 14 hours so the current limit is more like 700 miles between stops. The use of CNG for trucks requires too many stops to refill. The move toward CNG trucks is well underway even without government assistants. The economic rewards are so obvious that private companies like Cummins Diesel are building the engines and others are building the filling stations. Companies like Freightliner are currently manufacturing trucks of various sizes that use both CNG and LNG. Many large companies like Proctor and Gamble are suggesting that in the future they will only do business with carriers who use CNG. Walmart is also pushing for this. Here is a couple of recent news reports and there are many more. This is coming with no help and considerable interference from the government. Economics not government drives the free market system. Over the past year, Clean Energy Fuels opted to make the first move in this game, building 70 fueling stations in 33 states Reuters reported that one of China's largest private companies, ENN Group, has a plan to invest millions in building natural gas filling stations in the United States, aiming to install 50 truck stops this year alone.

LPG

Part of the energy revolution currently underway in the United States is bogged down by the old chicken and egg dilemma. There is a need for liquid natural gas (LNG) filling stations but the cost cannot be justified because there are not enough semi’s running on LNG. On the other hand the cost of building these semis cannot be justified until there are more filling stations. There are 7,000 truck stops and it would cost one million dollars to install LNG pumps. This totals 7 billion which is about the amount spent on the solar projects that have gone bankrupted. This indicates to some that we have misplaced our priorities when it comes to energy policy. LNG is not only less expensive than diesel but it burns cleaner meaning fewer sulfates and nitrates. In addition we produce all the natural gas we need right here in the USA. It provides high paying jobs and reduces our dependency on foreign oil.

Voter ID

In the past there has been an ongoing argument about voter registration laws. Liberals maintain that this restricts voting because many people cannot get the proper documents to prove who they are and it mainly impacts the poor. Now we have Obamacare which requires proof of identity and in particular a photo ID. The same is required to qualify for welfare. Does this mean the many poor people will not get health care or welfare and if so what should be done about this injustice.

Recession

We hear almost daily that the recent recession was the worst economy since the great depression and we just assume that is true but I am not so sure. In the recession of 1980-82 we had a high of 10.8% unemployment, 13% inflation and 21% prime interest rates. In this recent recession we did reach 10% unemployment but inflation is less than 2% and the prime rate is .25%. In the earlier recession we recovered within a couple of years. The fed has pumped 4 trillion into the system which they could not due if we had 13% inflation. Can you see the government paying 20% interest on the money they borrowed fighting this recession.

Semantics

Many do not realize it but we have made huge strides in helping the poor, using of all things, semantics. We no longer have food stamps we have SNAP, no more handouts, we have safety nets and finally no more welfare but transitional living fund. I feel better already.

Fracking

“If somebody wants to build a coal-fired power plant, they can. It’s just that it will bankrupt them,” Obama said, responding to a question about his cap-and-trade plan. He later added, “Under my plan … electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket.” This quote, especially the part about skyrocket cost has haunted The President since he said it in 2008 but he has had a reprieve with the development of fracking. The price of natural gas is half what it was in 2006 and coal fired plants are rapidly being replaced with natural gas plants. 150 plants have been closed since 2010. The price of electricity will not skyrocket but has in fact stabilized. The United States is now a net exporter of oil and natural gas and this trend will continue. Lower energy costs have given US businesses a competitive edge and the energy sector is growing and is provided well-paying jobs. It is estimated that this sector has added almost a point to the GDP and is the main factor in why our deficit has declined this year over last. All of this growth has come from the private sector while the government has restricted fracking on public lands. Since President Obama took office, total U.S. oil and natural gas production has increased. This increase, however, has happened in spite of the President, not because of him. The increase in production is occurring on private and state lands, the use of which is much harder for the President to restrict (at least in the short term). Meanwhile, production on federal lands is decreasing significantly. This decrease isn’t a result of President Obama’s policies exclusively, but it is the result of decades and policies that have systematically reduced energy production on federal lands.

Unemployment benefits

As the debate on renewing unemployment compensation continues in the congress a government report states that the $300 per week on average that each participant receives adds $540 to the economy and actually helps overall growth. I say we should double the benefit and double the growth. As I think it through we should go much further and send everyone a check and the economy would really heat up. I think we have discovered the path to a Utopian society. The more the government sends us the more things improve and since they own the printing press let’s get going. We can start slow say at $1,000 per week and then expand until we are all living the life we deserve and rest assured that is what we will get.

Promise Zones

President Obama came on the scene like a breath of fresh air. His charismatic personality and his exceptional oratorical skills impressed the country and with a fine campaign he was able to first overcome Hillary Clinton and then to win the election. These same skills have now become his Achilles heel. While giving great speeches works well in campaign mode many more skills are needed to govern and Our President is sorely lacking in these areas. The result is that he still believes he can sway public opinion with oratory but it is no longer effective. Today The President will come out with another plan of government spending for depressed areas. It is called “Promise Zones” and will cost around a billion dollars which is not enough to make a difference in the unemployment but enough to attract all sorts of graft. It is just one more time when he believes that he can go out and give some speeches and solve some problems. Contrast that approach to Senator Rand Paul who a couple of weeks ago announced a plan to help these distressed areas by offering tax incentives to private businesses to come into those areas. He points out that there are experienced workers there who have been unemployed for many months and are anxious to go to work. I see The President’s approach as a desperate plan to prove he is doing something and while it may achieve some political ends it will not do much for the economy.

memory and optics

Recent research on memory loss has uncovered some reasons why treatment has not been more successful. Apparently the disease develops in three stages and the treatments have targeted only the first stage. In addition this first stage begins as much as 30 years before the onset. This means that earlier detection can make these treatments more effective. The second stage is the most damaging as at that point the body believes that the disease is an attack from some foreign substance and the immune system starts attacking the brain cells. The current drugs are ineffective in this stage and the discovery of the third stage is so new that work in this area has not yet begun. The number of elderly patients suffering debilitating memory loss is expected to triple as progress in controlling things like cancer and heart disease improve allowing for increases in life expectancy. There are many things that center around life style, that can ward off these diseases. Most important are physical and mental exercises, low fat, high fiber diet, active social contacts and adequate sleep all of which are common sense advice for anyone of any age. New subject. The word, “optics”, is used in the news to describe some event, usually political that can reflect poorly if not properly handled. We are witnessing such an event in today’s news. There is a group of nuns who spend their lives helping elderly people in nursing homes. They have objected to the part of Obamacare that demands providing birth control since they feel that this is murder both in the use of contraceptives and the so called morning after pill. The Justice Department has threated to impose millions in fines if these nuns fail to comply. Now here is where the optics come in. These nuns are not the big sisters of the rich. No they are called the Little Sisters of the Poor. These nuns have taken a vow of poverty and spend their lives taking care of people and the Justice Department is taking them to court. Many people are not real happy with the federal government and things like this makes them even less happy.

SNAP

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the government program that provides food stamps and it is issued through cards called EBT (electronic benefit transfer). These cards replaced food stamps which were more costly to issue and also caused some users to feel self-conscious. When the name was changed from food stamps to SNAP the list of items that could be purchased was limited to healthy food. No more junk food. The use of these benefits has increased from 40 billion per year in 2008 to 80 billion per year in 2013. This increase is attributed to three things. First is the recession, second government workers going out to encourage people to take advantage of the cards and third, fraud. There are no reliable statistics on fraud but here is how it works. There are stores around the country that will offer cash at 50 cents on the dollar for the card and many who are addicted will use that money to buy drugs. So much for not buying junk food! Recently in an attempt to counteract that, states have started drug testing applicants for SNAP but a judge has ruled that unconstitutional. Most people who apply for jobs find out they will be drug tested and this is also the case with certain government jobs. This does not apply to members of congress. In a separate story several states have passed laws limiting the use of EBT cards at liquor stores, race tracks and casinos.